Local communities in Greece are setting up their own currencies, with the most notable being the Tem. You can read the full story here (hat tip - Chris Colvin). Why are they doing this? Is it anti-Euro sentiment? Is Greece about to exit the Euro and go back to the drachma (see below)? Is it just Greeks asserting and projecting their local identity? My guess is that it has to do with tax evasion.
My colleague and former PhD student Gareth Campbell has created a website about the British Railway Mania - click here . This episode has been described by the Economist as probably the greatest bubble in human history. Gareth's website provides background on the Mania and posits some explanations for the 'bubble'. In his explanation of why the bubble happened, Gareth places a lot of emphasis on investor myopia regarding future dividends and uncalled capital. His study of investors during the episode does not support the view that this episode was fuelled by naive and irrational investors.